Working Holiday in Canada: Your First Week

The first thing new recipients of a working holiday in Canada should consider is how they will adjust to Canada and its prevailing socio-cultural environment.

In the course of these considerations, the first week should be held prominently in the minds of recipients as that period is the most crucial in deciding the success of your transition of getting used to living in Canada.

Most of the first week will be spent settling down and acquainting yourself with the fundamental necessities of Canadian life.

Housing accommodations, opening a bank account, getting affiliated with any roommates or neighbors, getting settled at your workplace, and establishing a basic itinerary of things you want to do daily. These things are important in giving you a sense of firm footing in a new land.

If all of these expectations and considerations give you a sense of anxiety about your ability to adjust to Canadian life in the first week of your Working Holiday Visa Canada, we hope the following outline can restore some confidence in your ability to do so.

IEC Working Holiday

Canada is a fantastic option for those looking to gain life experience - it is also hugely beneficial to Canadian work experience to better compete in the global economy. If you're a travel influencer or love to travel, backpack, and explore new places for a few months, then Canada's unspoiled wilderness and urban splendor await you.

A working holiday can be a truly life-altering experience. It allows you to have various life experiences by living, working, and traveling to different environments. In addition, a working holiday will enable you to get to know many different cultures, environments, and people from all walks of life. This can teach you new approaches to business, experience a foreign country, and develop your language skills.

The Canadian Working Holiday program allows young adults from designated countries to travel and work in Canada for 12-24 months, moving from job to job throughout the country. The best thing about a Canada Working Holiday is that you can earn money to fund your travels during your stay in Canada.

The International Experience Canada has a youth mobility agreement with 35 countries. This allows the citizens of the designated countries to visit Canada as open work permit holders. A Canada open work permit allows foreign workers to work for whomever they choose over a certain period, provided the company is Canadian.

Preparations for Your Working Holiday

Preparation of the Correct Documents for the Duration of Your Stay

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) have some of the most stringent rules and regulations relative to other prominent nations' immigration departments.

This is done to secure and maintain a high-quality stream of immigrants to the country, all of whom possess some quality, skill, experience, or knowledge the Canadian government desires to contribute positively to the country's socio-economic development.

Every one of Canada's numerous immigration application programs and streams has its own set of eligibility criteria and requirements that are distinctly outlined in such a manner as to funnel the correct prospective migrants to the immigration programs that will optimize their abilities.

For successful recipients of the Working Holiday Visa, there are still legal documents you need to present to the relevant Canadian authorities to ensure your stay for the duration of the program.

The documents will also allow you to create a legal footprint within the country that will give you access to Canadian institutional services such as banks, postal services, etc.

The following provides a brief list and explanation of some of the prepared documents you need for your stay in Canada.

Police Certificates

Police certificates are generally needed if the working holiday recipient comes from a country they have resided in for over six months since they were 18. You can apply for a police certificate from your local police station.

The police certificate also functions as proof of possessing a clear criminal record. Although Canada holds a very progressive stance towards immigration and places a premium on growing its population through assimilating as many talented people from around the world into the country, it still wants to preserve the safety and security of its people.

That is why it places a lot of emphasis on screening prospective immigrants to ensure they have no criminality in their background.

Medical Exams

Becoming a working holiday recipient also requires applying for a work permit, which needs to be accompanied by a medical exam. An IRCC-endorsed medical practitioner must perform the medical exam, and you must present it to the Canadian border officials upon arrival in Canada.

Having a medical certificate as a signifier of a clean health bill allows you access most of Canada's private healthcare system.

CV/Resume

A Curriculum Vitae/Resume is a very critical document always to have. While moving from one place to another with your open work permit, you must secure jobs to sustain yourself and continue to fund your travels.

Having a CV with you will enable you to secure these much-needed menial labor and low-skilled jobs. We recommend looking up how to write a proper CV/resume on CanadianVisa.

Passport

A passport is of high necessity for any non-Canadian resident or citizen. It is required as your legal proof of justified entry and travel within Canada. It must be legible for any Canadian member of Canada's legal establishment and last for your working holiday.

Proof Of Residency

Proof of residence document like your residential address obtained from your country of citizenship does not only serve as a means to verify that you are who you say you are but, along with your passport and proof of financial support, it allows you to gain access to Canada's public and private institutions.

Proof Of Financial Support

A document that serves as proof of your ability to support yourself financially, such as a bank statement, is useful in showing that you possess a virtual credit facility that can be used to judge your creditworthiness and a safe store to deposit money and conduct financial transactions. It's also needed for job applications.

Health Insurance

Being on a working holiday means you only possess a temporary work visa. As a result, this does not make you entitled to any of the benefits extended and afforded to permanent residency status holders. One of these highly appreciated governmental benefits involves free healthcare insurance policy services.

Recipients of a working holiday must make arrangements within their countries of origin to obtain a healthcare insurance policy covering medical care, hospitalization, and repatriation.

Your First Week on a Working Holiday in Canada

With the successful preparation of the correct documents you need to have upon your arrival, you need to utilize these documents to settle down, assimilate into Canadian life and secure your stay for the first week and duration of your stay in Canada. The following provides an extensive list of things you need to do and should expect during the first week of your stay in Canada.

Present Your Passport to the Canadian Border Authorities

When you arrive, the first thing that will be required of you is the provision of your passport to the relevant Canadian border immigration authorities. If they approve the passport, they will certify it with a stamp, an official seal of approval that you have been allowed legal entry into Canada.

Once you're done with this process, please go to the nearest IRCC office and present them with your open work permit, which should prove your legal eligibility to work and travel in Canada.

Make Arrangements for Suitable Accommodations

Once you have moved to Canada, you must be smart about your buying options and choices. Renting in Canada, you are expected to pay your rent in full on time, contact your landlord if anything must be fixed, and keep a clean and well-maintained home or apartment.

When you decide where to live, you must always learn more about the cost of transport in Canada, including the cost of gasoline, public transport, and a taxi, which is crucial to know as you will need transport to get to work around.

Relevant Necessities That Will Help to Expedite the Process of Settling in Canada

• Converter/Adapter plugs
• Personal electronics, e.g., tablets, smartphones
• Small appliances, e.g., vacuum cleaner
• Kitchenware
• Medication
• Clothing and food

Pay a Visit to Your Neighbors

Get acquainted with your neighbors. Being in a new environment among strangers can be very isolating, which in the long run, can lead to the development of anxieties and ill mental health. Building a relationship with your neighbors can help to make you feel more secure in your environment.

The social capital built among local Canadians will also benefit you, in the long run, should you desire to move permanently to Canada and need references to apply.

Pay a Visit to the Nearest Municipal Office 

Visiting the local municipal office in your neighborhood and introducing yourself to the council members, if possible, can help organically involve you in the activities in the community and maximize your potential to meet new Canadians who can introduce you to new experiences in Canada.

Your local municipal office can also engage you in community service work, providing a valuable service to hundreds of Canadians who may afford you a lot of social capital in the broader context of your settlement.

Secure the Services of an Affordable Doctor

Healthcare is essential to ensuring you can enjoy your Canadian work and travel experiences without interruptions. However, suppose you fall sick and cannot continue to work and travel. In that case, the only recourse you have to bring yourself back to health so you can continue to thrive is to get medical attention from a trusted and authoritative medical practitioner.

To gain access to medical attention as a temporary visa and open work permit holder, you must present the health insurance policy coverage you're supposed to acquire before you arrive in Canada. Present this policy cover to your doctor, and they'll be legally bound to provide you with the health services you need to make a full recovery.

Find and Secure the Services of a Shipping Company

Whether you think so or not, at some stage, you will need to bring some of the valuable possessions over that you either forgot or did not prioritize at the time of your departure. This will necessitate the services of a shipping company.

You can choose to transport your goods via air or sea freight, and most importantly, you need to go over the duties imposed on each kind of goods.

The following is a list of some of the international shipping companies to Canada:

• My Baggage: Ships luggage, boxes, and sports equipment worldwide and delivers it to your door.
• Seven Seas Worldwide: Sends excess baggage or personal belongings to Canada in containers via sea freights.
• Ship Lilly: Sends excess baggage or personal belongings to Canada via sea or air freight.
• FedEx: Sends smaller items in boxes of up to 25kg to Canada via air freight.
• DHL: Sends smaller items in boxes of up to 25kg to Canada via air freight.

Open a Bank Account and Create a Budget for Yourself

With your bank statements and proof of account documents, it is highly recommended that you go to the nearest trusted Canadian bank and open a bank account. Financial transactions are more easily facilitated with a local bank account, and transaction fees are much lower. The following is a list of easily accessible and popular Canadian banks.

• Royal Bank of Canada (RBC)

• Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD)

• Bank of Nova Scotia (Scotiabank)

• Bank of Montreal (BMO)

• Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC)

Find a Reasonably Affordable Telecommunications Mobile and Internet Provider

Mobile devices and internet access are massively integral to everyday life today. Therefore, recipients of a working holiday visa must find and subscribe to a telecommunications internet provider and cellular service.

Making calls and sending messages is much easier if it is done with the assistance of a mobile service provider. The first week of your working holiday will also require making lots of long-distance calls to relevant Canadian government institutions and making calls back home to your relatives.

Get a Drivers License

If you're the type of person who desires a loss of ease of mobility, you will need to take a ride to the Canadian Motor vehicles department and either apply for a Canadian driver's license or present your driver's license from your own home country as a possible alternative.

Make Arrangements With the Canadian Taxman

Considering that you'll be working during your working holiday stay in Canada, the Canadian tax authorities will be legally bound to acquire a portion of your earnings as a worker within the Canadian workplace.

To avoid any impending and unnecessary legal ramifications of not disclosing your earnings and tax duties, you should register with the local Canadian tax authorities to pay your dues as a working member of Canadian society.

Why go to Canada on a Working Holiday?

A working holiday can be a truly life-altering experience. It allows you to have various life experiences by living, working, and traveling to different environments. An active holiday will enable you to get to know many different cultures, environments, and people from all walks of life. This can teach you new approaches to business, experience a foreign country, and develop your language skills.

How Can We Help You Prepare for the First Week of Your Working Holiday in Canada?

By using a Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultants (RCICs) affiliated company like CanadianVisa, you will be equipped with all the relevant and authoritative information you need to help ease your transition into Canadian life in the first week of your stay.

FAQs

What is the Easiest way you can Help Transition Yourself Into Canada in Your First Week?

Possibly the easiest and best thing you can do to help transition yourself into Canadian life in your first week is to make a friend with a local Canadian who can guide you through the ins and outs of Canadian life.

What is the Least Advisable Thing you can do During Your First Week in Canada?

Isolating yourself and not making connections with anyone is not going to help ease you into Canadian life in your first week in Canada.

Is it Possible to Find a job in Your First Week in Canada if you Didn't Receive a Job Offer?

The Canadian job marketplace is robust and flexible enough to absorb almost anyone willing to learn and work hard on their jobs.